Section 2-8D-4 - Elections; vacancies.
2-8D-4. Elections; vacancies.
A. Members of the senate shall be elected for terms of four years.
B. If a vacancy occurs in the office of senator for any reason, the vacancy shall be filled as follows:
(1) for a senate district that is situated wholly within the exterior boundaries of a single county, the board of county commissioners of that county shall appoint the senator to fill the vacancy; and
(2) for a senate district situated within two or more counties:
(a) the board of county commissioners of each county in the senate district shall submit one name to the governor; and
(b) the governor shall appoint the senator to fill the vacancy from the list of names so submitted.
C. An appointment to fill a vacancy in the senate shall be for a term ending on December 31 after the next general election.
D. An appointment to fill a vacancy made before the general election of 2004 shall be made from the district as it was described in Laws 1991 (1st S.S.), Chapter 3, Sections 7 through 48. After the general election of 2004, a vacancy shall be filled by appointment from the district set out in the 2002 Senate Redistricting Act [2-8D-1 to 2-8D-49 NMSA 1978].